1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a receiving apparatus which receives image data acquired through image capturing by a capsule endoscope introduced inside a body of a subject via a predetermined electric wave, and an in-vivo information acquiring system employing the receiving apparatus.
2. Description of the Related Art
In recent years, in a field of an endoscope, a capsule endoscope, which is a swallowable endoscope provided with an imaging function and a radio communication function, appears, and an in-vivo information acquiring system which acquires image data acquired through image capturing by the capsule endoscope inside the subject is being developed. In the in-vivo information acquiring system, the capsule endoscope functions, after being swallowed from a mouth of the subject for an observation (examination) until naturally discharged from the subject, so as to travel inside digestive tracts of the subject following peristaltic movements and to capture images inside the digestive tracts at predetermined intervals, for example at 0.5-second intervals.
While the capsule endoscope travels inside the digestive tract of the subject, image data acquired through image capturing by the capsule endoscope is sequentially transmitted to an outside by radio communication, and received by a receiving apparatus via receiving antennas arranged outside the subject in a dispersed manner. The receiving apparatus generates image data based on radio signals sequentially received via the receiving antennas and sequentially accumulates the obtained image data in a memory. Thus, the receiving apparatus acquires image data of an interior of the subject from the capsule endoscope. The subject, by carrying the receiving apparatus, can move freely while having the receiving apparatus receive the image data of an interior of the digestive tract, after swallowing the capsule endoscope until naturally discharging the same. Thereafter, a doctor or a nurse transfers the image data of the interior of the subject accumulated in the receiving apparatus to an image display device and displays images of the interior of the subject on a monitor of the image display device. The doctor or the nurse can make diagnosis of the subject by observing the images of the interior of the subject as displayed on the monitor (for example, see Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2003-19111).
Before receiving the image data from the capsule endoscope introduced inside the subject, the receiving apparatus acquires patient information such as a name of a patient and a patient ID that identifies the subject, and is initialized so as to receive image data from the capsule endoscope as image data of the subject identified by the patient information. The patient information is generally managed in an integrated manner by the above mentioned image display device. The receiving apparatus is connected to the image display device installed in a medical office, for example, and acquires the patient information of the subject from the image display device for initialization. Thereafter, the initialized receiving apparatus is carried into an examination room, for example, and attached to the subject in the examination room.